New prayer walk intended to bring hope to deprived communities

The event, called the Three Crosses walk, has been organised by Cllr Michael Bennett-Sylvester, Thrybergh team priest Helen Terry and curate James Gould.

Its route has been mapped to take walkers through communities blighted by deprivation.

All locations on the journey are officially in the national top ten percent of neighbourhoods for deprivation, said Cllr Bennett-Sylvester.

The event name has religious meaning, but was also chosen because it is in three sections and can be tracked using the X1, X2 and X3 bus routes.

He explained: “ The aim is to highlight the extent and depth of poverty and deprivation we have in Rotherham and remember Christ’s mission for the poorest and most marginalised in society.

“Starting from the junction of South Street and Meadowbank Road the entire route through to Thrybergh Church Hall the prayer walkers will continuously be in neighbourhoods that are in England’s most deprived ten per cent of neighbourhoods and will pass through four of Rotherham’s five neighbourhoods that are in England’s most deprived one per cent (Masbrough West, Eastwood Central, Eastwood Village and East Herringthorpe North).

“To put it bluntly the people living in these neighbourhoods will lead on average a harder shorter life than 99 per cent of all other people in England.”

The group will leave the South Street and Meadowbank Road junction at 1pm, moving to the Chapel On The Bridge, at 2pm to the Redeemed Christian Church Of God at Eastwood View and at 3pm to Thrybergh Church Hall with an expected arrival at 4pm.

Refreshments will be provided there and a period of reflection and prayer will also take place.

There is an open invitation for anyone to do part, or all, of the walk.

Cllr Bennett-Sylvester added: “I would advise anybody coming to prepare to see heartbreak and sights that should not exist but also hope and light where good things are happening from organisations that are Christian, secular and other faiths that make a difference.

“If during Lent we focus on that mission of Christ’s that we too through prayer and worldly means can be part of that.”